Beginning Painting: Value, Color, and Composition

This course will be an extensive introduction to painting in oils and a vigorous investigation into the composition, design, and execution of paintings with traditional painting materials. Through drawing, still life, life models, and an array of reference material, we will execute a series of paintings that will involve the investigation of color theory, as well as spatial constructs, including traditional perspective but also contemporary problems of photography and collage. For conference, each student will be asked to study one specific artist over the course of the semester and make works that directly respond to that artist’s work. Each student will also write an essay that will be presented to the class, which will take the form of a letter written to the artist in question and take on the attitude of the student’s semester-long relationship with that artist. The focus of the course is the practice of painting and the development of a personal relationship with that history. There will be regular critiques, presentations, class trips, and one exhibition.